Cup,mug or other drinking vessel,more especially made of plastic

ABSTRACT

IN A CUP, MUG OR SIMILAR DRINKING VESSEL, HAVING DIRECTLY IN THE CUP WALL A SERIES OF INWARD PROJECTIONS, TEETH OR CAMS, WHICH PROTRUDE INTO THE CUP CAVITY IN ORDER TO FACILITATE AND PROMOTE THE MIXING OF INGREDIENTS FED TO THE CUP CAVITY, A RAISED PORTION OF THE BOTTOM FACES WITH ITS UPRIGHT SIDE WALL PARTS THESE WALL PROJECTIONS, TEETH OR CAMS CONCAVELY IN ORDER TO INCREASE THE WHIRLING EFFECT EXERTED THEREBY ON THE MIXTURE INGREDIENTS AND TO THEREBY AMELIORATE THE TASTE OF THE MIXTURE.

p 7 'r. VAN'T HOFF 3,606,262

CUP, MUG OR OTHER DRINKING VESSEL, MORE ESPECIALLY MADE OF PLASTIC Filed April 1, 1969 INVENTOR 720m: mlvrflorF United States Patent 3,606,262 CUP, MUG OR OTHER DRINKING VESSEL, MORE ESPECIALLY MADE OF PLASTIC Tennis vant Hoff, Rotterdam, Netherlands, assignor to Impromex A.G., Freibonrg, Switzerland Filed Apr. 1, 1969, Ser. No. 811,908 Claims priority, application Netherlands, Apr. 2, 1968, 6804631 Int. Cl. B01f 3/00 US. Cl. 259-1 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE In a cup, mug or similar drinking vessel, having directly in the cup wall a series of inward projections, teeth or cams, which protrude into the cup cavity in order to facilitate and promote the mixing of ingredients fed to the cup cavity, a raised portion of the bottom faces with its upright side wall parts these wall projections, teeth or cams concavely in order to increase the whirling effect exerted thereby on the mixture ingredients and to thereby ameliorate the taste of the mixture.

The invention relates to a cup, mug or similar drinking vessel, more especially made of plastic, having a bottom and an upright wall, a plurality of projections, teeth or cams which may be formed, for instance, by inward deformation of the cup wall and protrude from the cup wall into the cup cavity being located near the bottom.

A plastic cup of this typewhich is per se known from US. patent specification 2,088,181-is frequently used in an automatic beverage dispenser. In such case the beverage is generally fed to the interior of the cup in a continuous stream or jet of a not yet fully homogeneous mixture of liquid, e.g. water, and of solid constituents to be dissolved or to be dispersed in the liquid, e.'g. coffee powder, milk powder and sugar. If the feeding jet of mixture is directed obliquely against the upright cup wall, mostly a turbulence or vortex motion of the supplied mixture amount is created, whereby a further mixing effect of the supplied ingredients takes place. This mixing effect and the increase in taste resulting therefrom are enhanced by the projections, teeth or cams present in the cup wall.

According to the invention it has been found, however, that these efiects may be considerably improved if the cup bottom is provided with a raised portion which may be formed, for instance, by inward deformation of the cup bottom and also protrudes amidst the projections, teeth or cams into the cup cavity, the subsequent parts into which the sidewall of the raised bottom portion is divided extending opposite said projections, teeth or cams and succeeding each other in such away that a stream of ingredients, like a mixture of liquid and solids, which bounces against said projections, teeth or cams and is given a vortex motion thereby, bounces against the side wall parts of the raised bottom portion and is rebounded thereby in a vortex motion towards the proje'ctions, teeth or cams. To that aim the aforementioned raised bottom portion may be so constructed, according to the invention, that at least one of the side wall parts of the raised bottom portion faces the opposite projections, teeth or cams concavely, or that two subsequent side wall parts of the raised portion enclose at their sides facing the opposite projections, teeth or cams a plane or spherical angle of less than, 180. An action on the stream of ingredients brought into a vortex motion, which adds to the aforementioned effects, is obtained according to the invention when the side wall parts enclose Patented Sept. 20, 1971 together with the cup axis an angle which converges towards the cup bottom. The invention will be elucidated in the now following description with reference to the accompanying drawings of some embodiments, to which the invention is not restricted, however.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 shows a side elevational view of a cup according to the invention, a part of the side wall being broken away and part of a section along the lines I'I in FIG. 2 being represented.

FIG. 2 shows a top view on the cup according to FIG. 1 and FIGS. 3 and 4 show top views on other embodiments of the cup according to the invention.

The cup according to FIGS. 1 and 2 has a wall 1 beaded at its upper edge, which merges into a bottom 2 at its underside. Nearthe bottom a continuous series of inward projections or deformations 3 is located in the wall 1, the projections 3 protruding into the cup cavity 4 enclosed by the wall 1 and the bottom 2.

The bottom 2 has in its center a raised portion 5 extending amidst the inward projections 3 also into the cup cavity 4.The height of the raised portion 5 within the cup cavity 4 is so chosen that a second cup which is placed in the cup cavity 4 will bear, with its bottom face 2a which is situated somewhat higher than the circumferentially extending bottom ring 2b, on the raised portion 5 of the lower cup, without the bottom ring2b of the upper cup bearing on the inward projections 3 of the lower cup.

The raised bottom portion 5 of the cup according to the FIGS. 1 and '2 has a side wall 6 which is divided in subsequent parts 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d, 6e and 6f extend ing opposite the projections 3. The side wall parts 612-6) all converge in the direction of the bottom 2. The side wall parts 6a, 60 and 6e are of concave shape at their sides facing the opposite inward projections 3.

Between the side wall parts of the raised bottom portion 5 and the inward projections 3, there remain spaces 7 connected with each other, which are represented in FIG. 1 in a vertical section and in FIG. 2 in a top view.

When, as is usually the case in beverage dispensing machines, a stream of liquid and solid constituents to be mixed, which is directed obliquely to the cup wall, enters the spaces 7, a vortex motion of these constituents will occur between the projections 3 in the cup wall and the side wall parts of the raised bottom portion 5. This vortex motion is strongly enhanced by the fact that the constituents to be mixed bounce regularly, in their vortex motion, against the side wall parts 6 and the projections 3 and are turned off thereby. In this manner a better mixing effect and, consequently, generally a better taste of the so mixed beverage is obtained.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show other embodiments of the cup according to the invention, respectively, similar cup parts to those according to FIGS. 1 and 2 have the same reference numerals.

In the cup of FIG. 3 the side wall parts 6g constitute a regular, hollow polygon with hollow sides facing the projections 3.

In the cup according to FIG. 4, the side wall parts 6h constitute a regular star, the side wall parts 6h between two subsequent points of the star enclosing an angle of less than at their respective sides facing the protions 3. This creates the effect which may be compared to that of the cavities constituted by the side wall parts 6g in FIG. 3 and 6a, 60 and 62 in FIG. 1, respectively. Depending on the composition and/or the viscosity of the constituents which have to be mixed, it may be determined from case to case which cup embodiment is the most satisfactory one.

"What Itclaim is: V H t V t 1. A cup, mug or similar drinking vessel, made of plastic, having a bottom and an upright wall, a plurality of projections protruding from the cup wall into the cup cavity and being located near the bottom, characterized in that the bottom is provided with a raised portion which also protrudes amidst the projections into the cup cavity, the side Wall of the raised portion being divided into a plurality of parts disposed opposite and facing said projections and succeeding each other in such a way that a stream of ingredients, like a mixture of liquid and solids, which bounces against said projections and is given a vortex motion thereby, bounces against the side wall parts of the raised bottom portion and is rebounced thereby in a vortex motion towards the projections, at least one of said side wall parts including an intermediate portion disposed radially inwardly of portions on either side thereof.

2. A cup, mug or similar drinking vessel according to 7 claim 1, characterized in that at least one of the side wall parts of the raised bottom portion is of concave configuration.

4 facing the opposite projections a plane or spherical angle of less than 180.

4. A cup, mug or similar drinking vessel according to claim 1, characterized in that the side wall parts enclose together with the cup axis an angle which converges towards the cup bottom.

5. A cup, mug or similar drinking vessel according to claim 1, characterized in that said projections comprise integral inwardly directed deformed portions of the cup wall.

6. A cup, mug or similar drinking vessel according to claim 1, characterized in that said raised portion comprises an integral inwardly deformed portion of the cup bottom.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,131,845 5/1964 Sherlock 229-15 3,397,867 12/1966 Hoff 220-97 3,441,173 4/1969 Edwards 259l ROBERT W. JENKINS, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 2'291 .5 

